Sam Carter/Amanda Tapping Discussion/Appreciation

[Deejay435]

You know, Mandy, what with Sam and the bottle in her mouth and Jack with the size indication, I had some very un-PG captions running through my head. Bad Tracy.

Dang PG rules.

[Mandysg1]

WoooHooo It may not be an easter egg, but I did get a green glowing jello today

[Tracy Jane]

WoooHooo It may not be an easter egg, but I did get a green glowing jello today

It's near enough for me Thanks for my Easter egg, Mandy.

[binkpmmc]

It's worth bearing in mind how and why the spoilers that we have came about. There was new casting to be done. Emphasis was, inevitably, on scenes for the casting.

Sam's already cast.

Do I make sense?

Yeah - you make sense and I get it and that's why I am still here waiting for spoilers hoping (as small as it may be) that they are positive and substantive and show Carter as the ture intelligent, respected leader that she is.

[binkpmmc]

How about this, because this might actually help some of us who think S9 and the treatment of Carter was less than stellar, dismal to the point of nauseating you might even say:

if you liked S9 or some of the new characters and want to say something here, instead of just talking about how great the new character is or how great S9 is or how great cooper (the putz) is why not tell us how S9 and how those characters are helping Carter and how cooper has helped Carter and how Carter has been positively written in S9 - I myself would like to see this as it might, bear in mind I said might, give me some additional hope for S10 because I really did not see much of it in S9 but others might (again, might) help me see differently. What I do not like is constantly hearing how great S9 was and how great cooper is (and getting examples of how great he is with other actors and characters that are NOT AT or Carter) and how great S10 will be and how great the new characters are but there is nothing substantive about how they positively affected Carter while there is tons to discuss about how it all negatively impacted Carter (and Daniel and Teal'c). As we have been saying about the show - just don't tell us - show us.

[golfbooy]

which they've never touched on since. I don't think sam has even touched the healing device since then.

Yep. In fact, I'm not sure the ribbon device or the healing device make an appearance at all from season six onward, right up until Apophis whips it out (to much cheering on my part) in Moebius. It's all part of "space ship disease" if you ask me. So very much of the effects budget goes to these enormously unsatisfying space battles and ship episodes that there is nothing left for all of the little touches that made SG-1 unique. It's the same sorry excuse that's shuffled out whenever TPTB are asked about actually "seeing" the gate in an episode, or about why there are very few "puddle passes", or why nobody uses zats and staff weapons anymore. I was even disappointed in the Ori staff weapon's effect in Crusade because it looked like it was designed to be cost effective for mass use rather than designed to look impressive or add gravitas to the Ori. I have similar feelings about Ronan's gun effect in Atlantis. Yes, the Zat blasts are time consuming and expensive to do, but if you ask me they really pay off. I know there is a sizeable portion of fans who absolutely adore the space ships with a passion that knows no bounds. And I know that the producers don't really want to lose them; they are, by and large, the coveted target demographic. But it would be nice to see some other effects aside from endless CGI sequences that are there just for the sake of having an episode have some CGI.

So, to make a pathetic attempt to pull this back on topic, I think that one of the main reasons that the hand device and other Goa'uld technology isn't seen very much anymore is because they're deemed a low priority when it comes to an episode's special effects budget. That means that Carter's ability to use Goa'uld tech is necessarily forgotten. Perhaps Vala's addition to the show will bring attention back to the whole host/Goa'uld relationship, and hopefully the fact that both Carter and Vala share this unique experience will at least be touched upon. But I'm not holding my breath. Any such scene will probably wind up on the editing room floor. Character stuff is so boring anyway.

[Skydiver]

i would like it if they address sam's goauld abilities more.

in s3, they did it so much that it was almsot getting to be ajoke...but then, other than the issues with conrad and the trust, jolinar has been forgotten.

what i don't get, if the budgets are such an issue...why the hades hire more actors? why waste that budget on space ships when a good chunk of the fans don't care for them anyway?

the show isn't called space ship sg-1, it's stargate sg1

i would LOVE to see jolinar be mentioned again. not only as a 'sam's unique blood chemistry saves teh day' but what if it's a liability? what if sg-1 gets in trouble because they can sense jolinar's remnants or what if sam falls ill to some 'kill the goauld' trap?

so much potential for plot and character moments and it's been brushed aside for the 3 B's

and the one other thing about character bits...they're cheap. just cost writing. you don't need a sfx budget to get sam and one of the boys talking

[zuz]

Happy Easter Samandans!

[golfbooy]

what i don't get, if the budgets are such an issue...why the hades hire more actors? why waste that budget on space ships when a good chunk of the fans don't care for them anyway?

The bugetary thing is a double-edged sword. Yes, the ships throw the special effects budget through the roof and negate most other effects in a couple of episodes, but they also severely cut down on location shooting. Having the Odyssey or the Daedalus on standing sets which are already blocked out saves time. They make for easy second unit shooting, too. The cost per episode probably evens out regardless of whether it's a ship show or a location show, it's just a matter of where they want to spend their budget. Honestly, I think a good bit of the decision making is based on scheduling and what either SG-1 or Atlantis requires at a given time. SG-1 gets forced into a ship show because Atlantis is on location and vice versa.

As for more actors, well, I don't think Bridge has had much of a choice with either Browder or Black. I don't believe that season nine was greenlighted by Sci-Fi until Ben Browder and only Ben Browder was brought on board. As for other high profile guests, it would surprise me if some additional money wasn't specially appropriated by Sony/Sci-Fi/MGM/whoever to allow for those spots. Lou Gossett Jr.'s arc was certainly a special deal, and it wouldn't surprise me if extra cash was ponied up for Beau Bridges, as well. There's little doubt in my mind that RDA is being paid from some traditionally untapped coffers. The other side of that coin is that Atlantis could be getting hosed somewhat when it comes to guests. Aside from Mitch Pileggi (maybe), I'm not sure that that show has had any pricey guest stars. Rather, they've leaned on crossovers to get their higher profile guests. Beau Bridges, Amanda Tapping, Michael Shanks, Claudia Black, Robert Picardo, and RDA all have visited or are lined up to visit Atlantis. To me, though, it's also one of the reasons why Atlantis has yet to develop it's own personality and identity. That and the completely copied episodes, of course.

the show isn't called space ship sg-1, it's stargate sg1

I have a funny thing with ships in that I don't mind them at all as long as they don't belong to Earth. I'm a sucker for cargo ships, motherships, Al'kesh, Asgard ships, Replicator ships, and, I hope, Ori ships too. It always felt like SG-1 was doing something really special when they were playing with things beyond their ken. But the Prometheus, Daedalus, and Odyssey bother me to no end. One of my favorite ship shows was Memento, largely because the blasted thing didn't work. They threw in that whole "raising the gate" scene, too, which really served to highlight the importance of the stargate and put it on somewhat of a pedestal. I appreciated the whole compare/contrast format of Memento and the message that SG-1 and their exploits through the gate were something special.

i would LOVE to see jolinar be mentioned again. not only as a 'sam's unique blood chemistry saves teh day' but what if it's a liability? what if sg-1 gets in trouble because they can sense jolinar's remnants or what if sam falls ill to some 'kill the goauld' trap?

I welcome any episode that significantly taps into SG-1's past, preferrably something more than a token joke about "the SG-1 trifecta" and preferrably something that's not there to write off established cannon like Dr. Lee's hand waving to make entropic cascade failure go away. Sam's relationship with Jolinar could easily be the basis for an episode. A teaser where SG-1 steps out of the gate looks around and has Sam having a flashback would be quite tantalizing. "I've been here before," works for me.



ETA Sorry this reply took so long, I'm kind of drifting here. But I haven't posted much recently and feel compelled to toss off something.

[Skydiver]

I have a funny thing with ships in that I don't mind them at all as long as they don't belong to Earth. I'm a sucker for cargo ships, motherships, Al'kesh, Asgard ships, Replicator ships, and, I hope, Ori ships too. It always felt like SG-1 was doing something really special when they were playing with things beyond their ken. But the Prometheus, Daedalus, and Odyssey bother me to no end. One of my favorite ship shows was Memento, largely because the blasted thing didn't work. They threw in that whole "raising the gate" scene, too, which really served to highlight the importance of the stargate and put it on somewhat of a pedestal. I appreciated the whole compare/contrast format of Memento and the message that SG-1 and their exploits through the gate were something special.
.

i agree. it was fun when the kids borrowed a teltac. and then had to figure out how it workd, sam had to be chief engineer and keep it working.

borrowing is great

it's the 'oops, we lost one, that's ok we'llcobble another one together in 2.4 days and have it ready to go' issue that just makes me shake my head.

these ar space ships, not toyotas. we don't have assembly lines to crank this stuff out at a moment's notice. yet, they keep doing that. (yes, 2-3 times, but that's still too many times, not to mention the sheer impossibiilty of parking a ship on earth and no one notices)

borrowing ships made it special. it kept it real. i liked watching sam struggled to figure the tech out and make things work. i liked how they had to fight to mesh two different sets of tech. that struggled added to the drama

now that we can seemingly add water adn stir to a ship, where's the drama? We don't even need sam anymore tomake stuff work, we got the asgard for that

we're losing the human touch that sam and the others brought to the show

[ReganX]

i agree. it was fun when the kids borrowed a teltac. and then had to figure out how it workd, sam had to be chief engineer and keep it working.

borrowing is great

it's the 'oops, we lost one, that's ok we'llcobble another one together in 2.4 days and have it ready to go' issue that just makes me shake my head.

these ar space ships, not toyotas. we don't have assembly lines to crank this stuff out at a moment's notice. yet, they keep doing that. (yes, 2-3 times, but that's still too many times, not to mention the sheer impossibiilty of parking a ship on earth and no one notices)

borrowing ships made it special. it kept it real. i liked watching sam struggled to figure the tech out and make things work. i liked how they had to fight to mesh two different sets of tech. that struggled added to the drama

now that we can seemingly add water adn stir to a ship, where's the drama? We don't even need sam anymore tomake stuff work, we got the asgard for that

I think you may have hit the nail squarely on the head as to why ships are now a dime a dozen instead of something borrowed once in a while, that needs to be explored and experimented with - why spend a few precious minutes of screentime highlighting Sam's technical expertise and showing the joy she takes in science when there can be cool special effects?

Human ingenuity and resourcefulness -vs- "Ooh, shiny!"

Not really a contest.

we're losing the human touch that sam and the others brought to the show

And with it, everything that made Stargate different than other sci-fi shows.

[astrogeologist]

Sorry if I'm kick-starting the festival all over again or something... I'm just not sure if you were quoting me in reference to the whole debate, or if you were addressing me... for something... So I'll just say that, again, I'm not saying that negative posts shouldn't ever occur on Samanda. That's ludicrous and waaaaaaaay too idealistic of a goal for any group of people to uphold.

And I'll be honest: It ticks (ticked; will tick) me off to no end when people come onto the thread and complain about the negativity, basically hoping to police all negativity out of the place, because at the end of the day (or at least three pages later), we all know that the thread will get right back to the positive side of things again. The great pendulum will eventually swing to the other side, and we'll all be posting lovely thoughts about Sam, Amanda, et al.

I am as anti-S9/S10 as the rest of them. I've counted my chickens before they've hatched. Heck, I've got them graded and ready for shipping. I'm fully preparing myself for a mental checkout of SG-1 some time around August. And it sucks. In fact, the only reason why I'm planning on watching the next season is for debating/whinging ammo. Pure and simple. Now, I ask myself, how freakin' sad is that?

That's the nature of the beast, and I'd like to think that I've been pretty clear in that regard. I really have no intentions of policing Samanda, because when you get right down to it, those who have had problems with the way SG-1 is headed far outweigh those who don't.

And no, before someone's veins start pumping, that doesn't mean that the thread should be dictated by a simple majority opinion. At the same time, I think it's impossible to assume that, until we see undeniable and clearly identifiable proof that the Samantha Carter character (and, most importantly, Amanda Tapping) is being utilized in the upcoming season, we can remain positive for any length of time. In short, TPTB have really screwed up this time around.

Luckily, I think someone up there knows it.

You've got a great idea, right there. Basically we raise the issue when it becomes an issue. But I think that has happened on a fairly regular basis. A few weeks ago, Sky had to put on her mod hat and weed out some things; a few weeks before that, others expressed their problems; a few weeks before that, we were all discussing the merits of neg vs. pro posts, just like we are now.

That said, my main question when posting on this thread has always been the same. It's, How far is too far? How far do we - as a group - take it to get our point across? How are we - as a group - letting our emotions pave the way for future offensive acts? Is there another outlet where we can do this? Is it possible that, when a group of us posts for three pages or more on something we're hating, we're essentially setting the tone for the thread for the next 24-hour period?

Our motto isn't "Kindness Always Reigns Here," by any means, but I'd like to think that it isn't "Kindness Used To Reign Here, Before We All Got Pissed At TIIC."

I hope that clarifies things, Sim (if you were even wondering). Because I'd like to think that you and I were always on the same wavelength when it came to the drivel that's been dished to us this season, and how we should be able to express ourselves here.

Great post, Dancer. GW is giving me messages about staying away from the green jello fridge for a 24-hour period. Harumph!

[astrogeologist]

I gotta tell you I am so torn here.

It's between In the Line of Duty and Matter of Time.

To understand my dilemma, you must first know that ITLOD was my very first Stargate SG-1 episode. EVER.

I saw this blonde woman, clearly a soldier, clearly very strong and well respected by her friends and co workers and yet she was emotionally torn to shreds by a Tok'ra named Jolinar...and I was hooked into the show. Plus HEY LOOK! It's MacGyver and man does he look hot.

I loved how dark Jolinar was. Her certainty of her fate. Her begging O'Neill to please listen to her. Her desperation to reach Daniel by using her knowledge of where Sha're was. ANYTHING. But she knew it was a lost cause. She knew because she saw pieces of Sam's thoughts. But you know, I've wondered about this too. It wasn't like a typical blending for a Tok'ra of course so Sam probably fought as much as she could tooth and nail. And wouldn't you? Your mind suddenly invaded by a parasitical being that you recognize as being your people's biggest foe at that time? What kind of interaction did Sam and Jolinar have do you think? My guess it was fairly limited otherwise Jolinar would have known to have trusted the Tauri...that they were in fact allies against the Goa'uld...that if they had trusted each other, things could have played out differently.

Amanda was just so stunning in this role. Her ability to emote with her facial expressions are just second to none. Just see any screen cap from the episodes when she's not herself like in ITLOD and they are completely distinguishable from the typical look that Sam has. This is true of her AU's or of Replicarter...but really noticable when she was Jolinar.

Now the thing is, ITLOD isn't really a "Sam" episode as much as it is an "Amanda" episode...because really, we only saw Sam at the very beginning as she desperately tried to save that man using mouth to mouth and then at the very end when she realizes Jolinar sacrificed herself for her. And then of course that heart rending scene with Cassie at the very end.

See, I have that emotional attachment of it being my first SG-1 episode on top of everything else.

But then there's A Matter of Time.

Sam giving orders. Sam explaining wormholes to Jack using an apple...man, that's just adoreable. Sam being fascinated by something that she's never seen before (getting caught up in the science and momentarily forgetting the human element). Sam getting angry at the brains who just wanted to blow up the problem because they couldn't explain it. Sam and Teal'c moments. Sam figuring things out. Sam helping Teal'c save O'Neill from the wormhole.

And can we forget...Sam and her pastry!

This is a really great Sam episode. So much highlighted about the character. Her smarts, her compassion, her strength of will, her friendship.

And did I mention the pastry?

So hopefully you see my dilemma. Do I choose an "Amanda" episode to which I hole a great deal of sentimental value or do I choose an incredible "Sam" episode?

Someone help me out here.

Wonderful post, Uber. And for ITLOD to be your first Stargate episode... wow! What an intro to Stargate!

[DEM]

Human ingenuity and resourcefulness -vs- "Ooh, shiny!"

"Steam comes out of it and everything."

[Skydiver]

lolol

i liked those days when we were the underdogs and were just doing the best we could with what we had.

we weren't perfrect, and we made mistakes, sam among them, but that was half hte fun.

'we go through the gate, get into trouble, get out of trouble, go home'

that's what made it fun and interesting.

sam pulling ideas out of her ... head. Jack making the judgement calls, daniel playing translator, teal'c's rippling muscles (sniff, i misshis staff weapon)

it was like macgyver in a way, but sam's the answer person. she'd have to think things up, figure things out, work the puzzle

that was the endearinig part of sam. her being just a normal person in this extraordinary job, doing the best she could